I realised, wile emailing a friend, that I hadn't warned anybody trying my
"Ciabatta" recipe that the dough only starts to cohere into an elastic mass
after 4- 5 minutes. As far as appearance goes it's still nearly all batter
after 4 minutes with just the beginnings of elastic structure around the
hook but, as the elasticated portion of the dough grows, positive feedback
sets in and the ever growing ball sweeps up more and more mixture until the
dough clears first the sides and then the bottom (only just clearing the
bottom and sometimes it never does but the "contact patch" should be < 3"
diameter).
John
John Wright
Yorkshire, England
"That which does not kill us makes us stronger"